Felt-skiving machine.



Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

.m I9 I S I MC LA" m n V u w!- N WS L m I- P P A 3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

L. W. V. WILMS.

" FELT SKIVING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. IT. I916.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- N RN NW 272062251 Le a WVQWM/Q 5W1.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEE W. V. WILMS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE SCHOLL MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS,A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

FELT-SKIVIN G MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 14, 1916.

Application filed February 17, 1916. Serial No. 78,803.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Lnn W. V. WILMs, a citizen of the United States, residing at hicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Felt-Skiving Machines, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in felt skiving machines, and, in some of its features, more particularly to an improved machine for practising the method of felt skiving disclosed in the patent to David W. Anderson, No. 1,145,654 dated July 6th, 1915.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a simple and eflicient mechanism for skiving felt pads or the like that will sever a predetermined portion of the stock without feathering the cut edges and that will with certainty produce a smooth, uni form cut-surface.

Another object is to provide simple and advantageous means for positioning and operatin the cuttinginstrumentality; a further o ject is to provide efiicient and desirable mechanism for facilitating rapid changes of the die members to vary the patterns of the articles produced from the felt stock; and other and further objects of my invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof; Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4is an enlarged section on line 44 of Fi 1. Figs. Sand 6 are diagrammatic views illustrating the cutting action, and Figs. 7 and 8 are views illustrating the result of the cutting action upon the stock and in one finished product.

eferrin to the specific embodiment of my invention herein shown, which may, however, be varied in many particulars without departure from the spirit of my invention, the machine is arranged to operate upon a felt sheet A, as a convenient form of stock, the stock, as shown in Fig. 1, being conveniently passed through the large receiving space aflorded between a bed frame 10 and a rigid overhanging head frame 1.1 mounted thereon. In the machine as herein shown the felt will be manipulated by hand ciprocating to bring successively thereof to position to be operated upon by the cooperating male die structure 12 and female die structure 13. These two die elements provide respectively a reciprocating plunger 14 having a die head 15 convexly shaped for definition of the desired elevation contours of the article to be formed, and a die-plate having an aperture16 of the lan configuration to be given to the artic e, the head 15, of course bein properly correlated to the contour of the emale die opening 16. When the male die structure 12 is suitably elevated, its head 15 forces through the appropriate aperture in the female die element 13 a tensioned or taut node of the felt stock, as illustrated at a in Fig. 5, and by the action of a suitable sever-l ing instrumentality 17, the node is scalped at the level of the female die; that is to say the extruded portion of the felt is cut away and permitted elastically to resume its original untensioned state and in so doing to take a convexed form as suggested at a in Fig. 8, leaving in the felt stock a corr sponding recess as indicated at a? in Fi 7. This method of skiving thus far descri ed, is disclosed in said patent to Anderson above mentioned.

In the advantageous construction, herein shown, of the instrumentalities above generally referred to, I mount the plunger 14 to reciprocate, while held against rotary motion, in a bearing bracket 21, rotation being prevented by the well own feather and slot connection. The vertical throw of the plunger is adjustably limited by arrangement of the stop nuts'22 on the threaded portion 23 of the plunger for stopping abutment against the lower end of the bracket 20. he upper-end of the plunger 14 has a head-table 24 on which the demountable die head 15 may be mounted, and retained against lateral displacement by engagement of a stud 25 in a suitable recess II] the die head 15. Vertical remotion, under control of the operator, may be imparted to the plunger by operation of the foot treadle 26 working against the spring 27 to actuate a lever 28 pivoted on a suitable bearing member 28' and working against the anti-friction roller 29 mounted on the extremity of the plunger.

The female die structure 15 preferably comprises a rotatable plate 30, pivoted on a the desired portions counter-sunk pivot 31 for rotation to bring any one of its numerous, differently-shaped die apertures 16, 16*, etc., into vertical re ister with the plunger. Of course for each aperture one or more appropriate male-dieheads 15 will be provided. A spring latch 32 mounted on the lower arm 11 of the head frame 11 engages such appropriate periph eral notch 33 in the rotatable die plate as to hold the plate securely in desired position.

With respect to the cutting operation I have discovered that in scalping the tensioned nodes the cutting instrumentality performs its function most advantageously if, during its bodily progression through the material, it is given a sawing or draw-cutting motion that is periodically reversed, rather than unidirectionally maintained. (For mere verbal distinction I will hereinafter refer to the relatively slow and extensive bodily advancement and retraction of the cutting implement as its reciprocation and to its relatively short, rapid, periodicallv-reversing movements transverse to the direction of reciprocation as its vibration. By vibrating the cutter blade during the cutting course of its reciprocation the tendency of the blade to deflect the felt fibers in either direction transversely to the line of reciprocating progress is not maintained uninterruptedly long enough to result in any detrimental pulling of the node sidewise or in any material shredding of the fibers at the cut edges into a feather edge, and I find that by thus vibrating the blade during the intervals while it is effecting its cutting advance, no detrimental distortion of the severed pad occurs, no appreciable feather-edging or shredding of the severed edges takes place, .very thin articles may be cut with great nicety and the cut surface (which elastically takes a curvature in the completed article) is smooth and free from undulations or crimps.

In the particular construction shown for effecting the desired movements of the cutter the upper and lower arms 11 and 11 of the head frame 11 are provided with guide rails 35-35 upon which there slides a reciprocating carrier-frame 36, carrying an electric motor 37 together with the cutting instrumentality and appropriate gearing means. As the motor 37 runs, its pulley 38, belted as at 39, to an elongated pulley 40, drives the latter, which is secured to a longitudinal shaft 41 mounted in bearings on the frame arm 11 and provided with pulley 42 that drives, through belt 43, a larger gear reducing pulley 44 mounted on a shaft 44' at the head-frame end, and at each end of shaft 44' is a disk 45 hearing a wrist pin 45 connected by a pitman 46 to a pivot pin 47 on the reciprocating carrier frame 36. Consequently, the operation of the motor 37 causes predetermined reciprocation of its own carrier frame, which also carries the cutting instrumentality 17. Specifically, the frame 36 has an extension 48 on which there is pivoted as at 49 a transversely vibratable lever 50. The front end of this lever provides a downwardly bent yoke 51, between the ends of which there is horizontally pivotally mounted, as at 52, a cutting blade 53 which preferably has its cutting edge struck on an are centered at about the pivotal axis of lever vibration. The blade has a heel projection 54 connected by a contractile spring 55 with the yoke 51 and the arrangement is preferably such that when, by the effect of spring 55, the cutting edge of the blade 53 is depressed lightly into contact with the surface of the plate 30, the under surface of said blade stands at a small acute angle to the surface of the plate. Of course the blade bodily reciprocates with the sliding frame 36, and from the motor 37 rapid vibrating motion is imparted thereto, said motor 37 having a pulley 38 from which a belt 39 running over suitable idlers 56 passes around a pulley 57 mounted on the frame extension 48, said pulley 57 having pivoted thereto at 58 a slide block 59 that engages in a slot 60 formed in the rear end of the vibratable lever 50.

In the operation of the machine the attendant positions a piece of stock as shown in Fig. 1, and elevates the plunger to force a node of tensioned material through the female die opening 16 in the plate 30, and then, starting the motor 37, he sets the cutting mechanism in operation. The motor, driving its own reciprocable carrier frame through the belt connection to shaft 41 and pulley 44 as described, advances the knife 53 bodily with the cutting edge of the knife sliding over the flat surface of the plate 30, the knife in its .forward progress receiving a transverse vibration from the motor through the operative connection of the rear end of lever 50 with the crank member on motor driven wheel 57, and consequently the node is scalped by the reciprocating and vibrating action of the knife, with beneficial results some of which have heretofore been referred to. As soon as the knife has completed its out and the retracti on of the motor frame begins, the attendant drops the plunger 14 by releasing his foot lever 26, manually shifts the stock to locate a fresh portion thereof above the male die 15, and again elevates the plunger, after which, in due course, the cycle of actions above described will be repeated.

While I have herein described in some detail a particular embodiment of my invention that I have found in practice to be advantageous and desirable in many of its details, and certain details of which I may claim for their advantage, it will be understood that in the broader aspects of my invention, many changes may be made in the specific construction without departure from the spirit of my invention and within the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:-

1. In a machine of the character described, the combination of means for presenting a node of elastic material, means for scalping said node comprising a knife mounted for reciprocation and vibration, means to reciprocate said knife, and means to vibrate it during its reciprocation.

2. In a machine of the character described, the combination of means for presenting a tense node of elastic stock, and means for scalping the node comprisin a knife mounted for reciprocation and vibration, a motor movable with said knife and connected thereto to vibrate the same, and means for reciprocating said knife and motor.

In a machine of the character described, the combination of means for presenting a tense node of elastic stock, and means for scalping the node comprising a knife mounted for reciprocation and vibration, a motor movable with said knife and connected thereto to vibrate the same, and means driven by the motor for reciprocating said knife and motor.

4. In a machine of the character described, the combination of means for presenting a node of elastic fibrous material, and means for scalping said node comprising a knife, motor means for vibratimg said knife, and means for reciprocating :said knife.

5. In a machine of the character described, the combination. of means for presenting a node of elastic fibrous material, and means for scalping said node comprising a knife, a lever carrying said knife, motor means for vibrating said lever, and means for reciprocatin said lever.

6. In a machine 0 the character described, the combination of means for presentinga node of elastic fibrous material, and means for scalping said node comprising a knife, a lever carrying said knife, mo-

tor means for vibrating said lever, and means operated by said motor for reciprocatin said lever.

In a machine of the character described, the combination of means fon presenting a node of material, said means including a female die plate, and means for scalping the node comprising a knife, a pivotal support for said knife permitting its cutting edge to travel guidedly upon the die plate, and-means for vlbrating and reciproeating said knife.

8. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a female die plate, a cooperating male die, mutually arranged for the presentation of a tense node of work through and above the die plate, a vibratable lever having a yoke, a knife pivoted in said yoke, a spring maintaining said knife in position with its cutting edge guided on the die plate and means for vibrating and reciprocating said lever.

9. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a bed frame, a male die member mounted for reciprocation therein, a head frame overhanging the bed frame and providing a pair of guide arms, a die plate having an opening therein carried by said head frame in cooperative relation with the male die, a slide frame in said head frame, a cutting instrumentality carried by said slide frame, a motor carried by said slide frame, and means driven by said motor for reciprocating said slide frame.

10. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a bed frame, a male die member mounted for reciprocation therein, a head frame overhanging the bed frame and providing a pair of guide arms, a die plate having an opening therein carried by said head frame in cooperative relation with the male die, a slide frame in said head frame, a cutting instrumentalit car- .ried by said slide frame, a motor carried by said slide frame, and means driven by said motor for reciprocating said slide frame and vibrating said cutting instrumentality.

11. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a plunger, means thereon removably to support a male die head, a rotatable female die member thereabove provided with different die apertures to accommodate different die heads, a nodescalping cutter above said die plate, and means for operating said cutter.

12. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a plunger, means thereon removably to support a male die head, a rotatable female die member thereabove provided with different die apertures to accommodate different die heads, latching means for retaining said plate in different positions, a node scalping cutter above said die plate, and means for operating said cut ter.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEE W. V. WILMS. In the presence of RALPH W. LIN'roN, M. FOSTER. 

